Aesculus × carnea

Meat Red Horse Chestnut ( Aesculus × carnea), inflorescence

The meat Red horse chestnut, horse chestnut and red flowering or misleading Red Horse Chestnut ( Aesculus × carnea syn: Aesculus rubicunda ), a commonly planted in parks in Central Europe deciduous tree of the genus of the horse chestnut is (Aesculus ). It is a hybrid between the coming of the Balkan Peninsula ordinary horse chestnut (Aesculus hippocastanum) and the North American Red Buckeye (Aesculus pavia ).

The meat Red Horse Chestnut is a first time in 1818 observed fertile hybrids; makes them viable seeds.

Description

This deciduous tree reaches heights of growth to 22 meters and trunk diameter to about 60 inches and is relatively slow-growing and short-lived. As a park tree it is therefore usually highly refined stocky on the Horse Chestnut. The crown is branched to round arched and tight. The bark is initially dark green, later reddish brown with many lenticels; often form burls. The bark of the branches is light greenish gray to reddish- gray with distinctive orange lenticels. The compound, palmate leaves are darker and smaller than the ordinary horse chestnut. The petiole is long up to 23 cm. The leaves are obovate to elliptic and 8 to 15 inches long and the margin serrate crenate. In contrast to the commons, the horse chestnut leaves barely change color in the fall.

The hazy bright red flowers are in a loose 12 to 20 centimeters long, paniculate inflorescence. The flowering time is in Central Europe, for example in the second half of May. The spherical capsule fruits are smooth or only slightly thorny; they are 3 to 4 centimeters somewhat smaller than in the ordinary horse chestnut. In the fruit there are two or three small dull brown seeds.

Cultivated forms

From the meat Red Horse Chestnut, there are some cultivated forms (selection):

• A. × carnea ' Briotii ': This form was created in 1858 in France. She grew joyful as the type. The leaves are shiny; but especially those at about 15 cm long panicles flowers are much darker; their color is bright blood red. Mainly because of the nicer appearance, this form is compared with the type as a street and park tree clearly preferred.
• A. × carnea var plantierensis ( bright red flower color )
• A. × carnea var purpurea ( purple intense flower color )